J'aurais ben l' goût d' sacrer mon camp jusqu'au printemps!

We unloaded Luba at Horses of the Sun around 9pm on Tuesday after a day of white knuckle driving.

The worst was when Deanna had to expertly thread the truck, camper and trailer through a mess of cars and trucks spinning out around us on black ice on the I-81 at mile 25 in New York State.

This is after Deanna safely guided us onto the shoulder after the truck hit black ice and we had no brakes!

As we round the corner, we see more cars in the ditch.

Endless stream of ditch pigs for about 2 miles….

Luba none the worse for wear, having a bite to eat when we stopped  for gas after the I-81 madness.

All the way back, we kept thinking about comments on Deanna's FB from her friend, Linda. "You should take Team Luba and head to Disney!" "Find another B&B and stay there until spring!"

But at the end of the day, there is no place like home. Luba was very happy to be turned out with Mama Sera. She danced into the quarantine paddock as Sera called out welcoming whinnies. First order of business was a big roll and a shake. Then she gobbled up a pail of warm sloppy beet pulp, soaked hay cubes and electrolytes. Sera got some leftover soaked hay cubes too.

Here is Luba, sporting the newest winter turnout colour - turquoise - hiding behind the round bale as Sera watches over her.

I laughed and laughed when this song, Lit vert by Plume Latraverse came on the radio. 

Roughly translated, the chorus says:

"It's cold,  even if winter is beautiful. I should get the hell out of town until spring!"

Pheasant Field B&B

We overnighted at Pheasant Field Bed and Breakfast near Carlilse, PA.
Warm and friendly welcome.
Just what we needed.

There is snow here and we got a dusting last night too.

Just finished breakfast. Poached pears with cranberry and walnut, mushroom, spinach and cheese fritata, sausages and pumpkin pancakes with maple syrup. Yumm.

Day 3: Homeward bound!

Multidays

I have learned to treat a long distance trailer trip like a multi day ride. We drive from gas station to gas station with a nice 30 minute hold at each one to rest, eat and drink. We have a routine that we follow to the letter every time, so Luba knows exactly what to expect. She eats like a horse every time! And then we do it again the next day.

Today is Day 2: We left Florence Horse Centre at 8:30 this morning. Destination today is Carlisle, PA at Pheasantfield Bale and Breakfast, a trip of just over 800 kms.

Ziggy, Kim, Mike and Stephanie are planning to stop there too, so looking forward to arriving around suppertime and having the evening to relax with a glass of wine. Tried to buy wine last night, but they do not sell alcohol on Sundays in Florence, SC.

Here are a few pics from this morning. Bright crisp morning with frost on the grass!

Live to ride another day

Luba and I gave it our best shot. Sometimes you eat up the trail and sometimes the trail eats you. Pulled after 35 miles for mild lameness. Luba is fine and we live to ride another day. Very proud of my mare and the way we represented Canada East. Grateful to everyone who supported us along the way. Congratulations to all our teammates for accepting the North American Endurance Team Challenge!

We are on the road home and finally have real internet access at the hotel in Florence, SC. Luba and Ziggy are safely settled in 70 foot round pens at Florence Horse Center. We are taking three days to drive home.  Hopefully the weather holds once we get further north!

The Eagle has landed

After our lovely Georgian morning, including a ride on the sandy trails in the woods around the farm, we carried on to the Sunshine State on Monday afternoon. The temperature gauge on the truck reading 29 C.

We arrived around 3:00 and found our way to Cabin 4. Each cabin has 4 stalls attached at the back, but we set Luba up in a lovely shaded paddock with many of the other Canada East horses.

Luba looked visibly relieved to see all the electric fence pens. “Oh, this is ride camp! I know how to do ride camp.” And she promptly set about eating hay. She must have wondered what the heck was going on for the last two days.

Kara and Deanna are sleeping in the cabin and I am cocooning in my camper.

First order of business was clipping off the winter coat. Luba had a surprisingly thick winter coat. She is a “flea-bitten” grey, which means she had darker flecks like freckles in her coat. After clipping, she looks like a leopard! 

Then Dr. Hie adjusted Luba. She was quite sore in her hind end from working so hard in the trailer. He also adjusted me later in the day. I was quite sore in my hind end from sitting in the truck and in my shoulders from travel stress. Traveling in truck and trailer for over 2400 kms is not for sissies!

All horses had to be on site by 12:00 yesterday. The FEI officials came by to check the FEI passports to make sure you brought the right horse, to take the horse’s temperature to make sure they were not sick, and gave us numbers to attach with zip ties to the horse’s tack for ride day and to the halter.  Luba was wearing her ratty old barn halter, so I sprinted over to the trailer to get a nice leather one. This is the big league!

Afterwards, seven of the Canada East team members went out for a stretch out ride in the Goethe Forest. We walked about 5 miles. Saw a deer! Then Wendy M and I took our horses for a short canter just to take the edge off. I felt all the accumulated tension of the travel flow out my fingers, my toes and the top of my head. 

This is what we came for. Baby, we were born to run!

One "P" short of a load

Long day yesterday. Luba gave us a scare - didn't poop all day! Eating (E), drinking (D), peeing (P) but no pooping.  Horses that are feeling fine do all for EDPP. Luba was one "P" short of a load!

We finally stopped for supper and unloaded her at a truck stop near FL border around 7pm and she finally pooped! Hallelujah! Stopped at the Rojeck's with Dessia and Stephanie for the night.

What a lovely farm. We are so grateful for their hospitality! Only a few more hours to drive today and we are there!  Also grateful for all our OCTRA friends who kept checking in with us throughout the day. Here are some pictures of the Rojeck's lovely farm this morning.

One more sleep…..

We are ready! 

Uwe helped me get the hay tied down and covered. He hooked up the trailer and has it pointing down the driveway. He made a special effort to make sure that Luba could load on the only patch of grass showing beside the lane way. 

Deanna arrived this afternoon. We all had a lovely dinner at Agave. 

The truck is all safe and ready for the big trip, thanks to:

Bob Peter's Garage

2046 Scott Street, Ottawa

Proud supporters of our Excellent Adventure in Florida!

Let's get this show on the road!

Rig is ready for early morning get-away,  pointed down the icy driveway.

Frozen sand

We got our first real dump of snow last week. That plus some cold weather and me running away from a cold started to get me worried about a classic recipe for tie-up.

Sonja and Horses of the Sun save the day again! I get a text that says "Will aim to work Luba each day for the next week. Pronoia! xo". Don't let old man winter kick you in the butt!

I got out to ride yesterday and today.  Today maybe for the last time before we leave for Florida.  The footing is great - powdery snow - just like frozen sand. It was too cold for the flash to work on my phone's camera, so everything looks pretty blue.

Now that we have the hay loaded in the trailer, most of the big jobs to get ready to go are done. Just washing horse gear, polishing up my saddle and installing the back up camera in the trailer, so we can watch the Luba Show en route.

This time next week, we should be arriving at our destination in Florida, the  Sunshine State. Here comes the sun!

Luba's Excellent Adventure in Florida

It snowed yesterday.

I schooled Luba in the sand ring on Saturday and then drove home in a white-out on the icy Highway 417 with a lame wiper on the driver's side.

Ottawa: Low of -17 C tonight. Feels like -23 C with the wind chill.
Bronson, Florida: 8 C tonight, with a high of 21 C tomorrow.

The North American Endurance Team Challenge in Florida can't arrive soon enough!

I invite you to join Luba's Excellent Adventure in Florida as a sponsor.

Every donation of $50 or more will receive a pair of hand-knit socks or a toque!
 Luba's Excellent Adventure in Florida!

Thanks to our sponsors!

My parents

T minus 15 - Getting the ducks lined up

Wet and rainy today. Good weather for a duck! Wish I had put a tarp over the top of the camper while it was still dry yesterday. Looks like it will be below zero now until we leave for Florida on December 7. Thankfully, the forecast calls for a bit of snow, but no freezing rain.

Luba and I are staying as active as the weather and footing allow. Focusing on body work, staying limber and a bit of speed work when we can. Using the sand ring as much as possible. Had a great canter ride with Kim and Ziggy/Shaka Khan last weekend on a balmy sunny Saturday.

We have been cross training as well - mounted archery! Finally put all the pieces together last Sunday.  What fun! Can't wait for skijoring! Charlotte good some great photos and a video.

Uwe and Samba photo: C. Tremblay

Agnus the arrow retriever photo: C. Tremblay

photo: C. Tremblay

photo: C. Tremblay

Uwe and I go to get hay for the trip on Saturday and Dr. Jenn from Navan Veterinary Services is coming to do the export papers for the trip.  I am grateful for her advice on keeping Luba in good health and making sure we have all the paperwork for the big trip! She is a rider herself, so I feel like she shares the excitement! Ducks of a feather flock together! Thanks, Dr. Jenn!

Dr. Jenn Hubbard, Navan Veterinary Services

The countdown...

“I set my goals, allow the power of the Living Universe to take over, and I enjoy the ride.”

The 100 mile North American Endurance Team Challenge is just a month away.  The gods willing, Luba and I will set out to ride 100 miles in a single day in the Goethe Forest in Florida on Friday, December 13, 2013 as part of one of  Canada's zone teams.

Supportive spouse and daughter bless Mom's adventure.
Deanna and Kara have agreed to crew for us :)
Travel plans are firming up - big girl pants pulled all the way up. Luba, rider and crew heading down in our own rig. Trailer clean and safetied. 
Annual leave approved.
Cabin and paddock booked at Black Prong Equestrian Centre.
Kind Mary has offered her guest paddock and guest bedrooms for a layover in Virginia :)
Paperwork and entry fee payment submitted to Equine Canada.
Flu booster done. 
Coggins done. 
FEC zero. 
Export papers in the works.
Square bales ordered.
Team uniforms ordered.
Bio and pictures submitted.
Luba blanketed with new insulated rain sheet and started on Biotic 8 and Ulcer Therapy Mix for a happy gut for the trip.

And we have even had time to take some group lessons with Sonja at Horses of the Sun and have some great group canters with Captain Wendy on  Club Équestre les Forestiers riding trails in St. Lazare. 

Just ride!

photo: K. Woolley

AND THANKS TO RENEGADE HOOF BOOTS FOR SPONSORING US! 

photo: wendywebbphotography.com

Go big or go home

The SVAHA Stormont Ride last weekend marked the end of the OCTRA ride season for us. We have had a blast competing in three distance riding disciplines: set speed, ride and tie and endurance. My favourite outing this season has to be Summer's End Ride.  It was just plain fun. Thanks to the Pecile Family for putting on a great ride.

Summer's End Ride and Tie  photo: B. Pecile

Our big goal of going faster has been accomplished. This set the stage for faster AND farther at the Stormont 75.  Since we were already qualified to enter the 100 miler at the North American Endurance Team Challenge  in Florida in December, our goal for Stormont was to experiment with speed, even at the expense of a completion.

North American Endurance Team Challenge 

The theme for the Stormont 75 can be summed up with the expression:

 Go big or go home.

A thousand little things have to go your way to successfully complete an endurance ride. When you hit a bump in the road, you have to make a decision - go big or go home? Know when to hold 'em and know when to fold 'em.

The first bump happened within 1/2 mile of the start of Satruday's 75 mile ride. Luba bucked as we entered a hay field and kicked off both her hind boots. With some sage advice from my friend, Wendy B - "She trains barefoot at home, right?" - I decided to stay with the pack for the first 19 mile loop, which included most of the main bush trail. If we got pulled for lameness at VC1, so be it. We were here to go fast.

The start of Saturday's 75. photo: M. Green

We completed the Orange loop with the front runners, pulsed in within 6 minutes with a CRI of 60/52. Luba ate well, I put strap-on boots on the back and we set out on the Yellow loop, cantering most of the way with the "peloton", bravely led by Wendy B and Firefly, aka Speedy Gonzales.

We hit our second bump at VC2. All was going well. CRI 64/60. Then at the end of the control check, Dr. Lynne motioned for me to come and see her. She was standing behind Luba. Uh-oh.

Luba's right glute was tightening up before our very eyes. She asked me keep an eye on it, and pronounced us fit to continue with a B for muscle tone.

I headed back to the crew area thinking to myself that Luba was coming into heat and Teresa had noticed that her ovaries on the right were tender the night before. We had just run a fast 35 miles with some trappy footing. I was electrolyting pretty hard, but the day was becoming warm and humid. Were we tying up again?

Gratefully, my friend dear Denise was able to massage Luba through the hold, while my stalwart crew, Kara and Wayne, looked after the rest of our needs. Luba peed lemonade and by the end of the hold, Denise pronounced her bum muscles about 50% improved. Should I stay or should I go now?




Last  year, I would have pulled. That was then. This is now.

I decided to go.  I know the trail, so if we got into trouble, I would know where we were and how to get  back safely.  However, I did not go out feeling 100% confident. As I rode past the crew tents, I jokingly said, "This is the point in the race where I ask myself why I ride more than 50 miles". Ha Ha.

Ha Ha indeed. Well the joke was on me. Luba sensed my hesitation and balked leaving ride camp. I called her a lazy old mule and got off and jogged with her in hand until we were out of the field, mounted up at the road and away we went. We were keeping a steady pace with Holly and Dave until we came to a snowmobile bridge on trail and Dave's horse went through 2 boards. We stopped to make sure they were okay before continuing on. Holly's horse led while I worried about Luba's bum and kept reaching back to feel how tight it was. Luba's rider also had not eaten well at the ride and hit the proverbial Wall with full force. This was the Pink/Blue loop otherwise known as the 20 mile road trip to Moose Creek Cement Factory and back. Luba and I tried to take the lead a couple of times, but to no avail. I am ever grateful to Holly and Faveur for the big favour they did pulling us through the doldrums.

Miraculously (?), Luba (and I?) perked up as we approached base camp. We pulsed in in 7 minutes, with CRI of 60/64 and Bs for impulsion and muscle tone, overall impression A-.  Only two short 12 mile loops to go. Kara managed to get some food into me, Denise massaged Luba again, Wayne kept Luba eating and moving and backing up. Positive Team Luba energy on the upswing. Time to get 'er done!

We cantered out of camp, me singing Deanna's sea shanty "Riding on a Donkey" at the top of my lungs. Barbara, Holly and Sally caught up with us a few miles out, when Luba stopped to tank up at a puddle. Holly and Barbara trotted on by the crazy singing Canuck, but Sally and her mare, Gracie, stopped to check out the puddle too. Our mares continued on happily together for the rest of the Blue/White loop at about 7 mph. Well except for when Luba spooked at the cows in Oscar's field, hit the ditch and bolted. My Garmin 310 says we hit 20 mph on that part LOL.

Lovely Sally and Gracie  photo: http://www.horseacademy.ae

We pulsed in in 6 minutes, CRI 64/68, all As from Dr. Lynne! (Denise's massage had super magical effects. I owe her a Shwarma). One more repeat loop to go. We can do this! Sally and I had a great time on trail and I am ever grateful to her for showing me the "virtual FEI crop". This consists of waving your hand behind your butt as if you had just farted. Apparently, horses think you are waving a crop!

The third bump in the road happened towards the end of the loop, when Luba lost a rear strap-on.  We stopped at the water at Oscar's, I took off the other boot and we finished the ride the way we started, naked behind!

Dr. Lynne vetted us through to complete with a ride time of  9 hours 56 minutes, CRI 60/68, B for impulsion and A- for muscle tone, overall impression A-.  It is always nice to see the same vet after hitting a bump at an earlier vet check, as they know first-hand whether things are getting better of worse. We were happy to complete and did not stand for BC, as I knew that Luba still had a sore bum.

I am ever grateful to Wendy M who came by after the ride to congratulate us and remind me to go big or go home.

"Don't go out on trail half way. Go out to rock it!"  Sage advice from a fierce competitor.

Wendy and Tu Gold on their way to winning Sunday's 75 in a race off! photo: http://www.horseacademy.ae

Leaning to the Left Makes the Eiffel Tower Seem Smaller

If you lean to the left, you will estimate quantities, like the height of the Eiffel Tower, to be smaller than if you were perfectly upright or tilted slightly to the right.  This is further scientific evidence of the mind/body connection.

The mind influences the body and the body influences the mind. Bodily sensations, like sight, smell, posture, etc. can affect the way you feel and what kind of decisions you make.

Leaning to the left makes the Eiffel Tower seem smaller: posture-modulated estimation. Eerland A, Guadalupe TM, Zwaan RA.

Psychology Institute, Faculty of Social Sciences, Erasmus University Rotterdam, P.O. Box 1738, 3000 DR Rotterdam, The Netherlands. eerland@fsw.eur.nl

Left lead canter has been an elusive goal for me and Luba. We worked on this a lot last year, but we are still pick up the right lead more often out on trail. To the extent that Luba's right pectoral is becoming slightly more developed than her left!

We had a lesson with Sonja this morning in the field. She observed two things. First, I tend to check Luba more to the left than to the right. So if I want her to slow down, I tend to check harder with my left rein and even turn her head towards the left. Secondly, I still tend to ride with my hip flexors too closed up. I need to open them, especially the right side, so that when I give the aid for left lead canter, I am lengthening and opening my right hip and allowing her to step through onto the correct lead. Can you say yoga yoga yoga this week?

So Luba has learned that when I checking to the left, it means slow down. Then I ask for the left canter with a slight bend to the left (and with my right hip closed up) and she she picks up the right canter instead.

To remedy this, we practised figure 8's at the trot, first to the right and then to the left, sling-shotting ourselves into a straight line canter on the left lead (reminiscent of my warm-up-and-leave-camp-at-a-canter strategy at Coates Creek).  If Luba picks up the right lead, I am to try to check her to the right, bring her back to trot, open up my right hip and ask for left lead again when I am in the sitting phase of a posting trot on left diagonal.

They say a good horse makes short miles, but I may also try leaning to the left during the latter stages of the Stormont 75 on Saturday :)

No fuss, no muss

Miss Charlotte, Miss Luba and I had a great girls weekend at Summer's End Ride.  We enjoyed the ever gracious hospitality of our friends, the Wright-Woodhouse's who live about 15 minutes from ridecamp.

The main event for us was the 6 mile Ride and Tie. Charlotte's intense black belt training schedule meant missing most of the rides so far this season. Now that she is Sempai Charlotte, she is back on a more regular routine at the do-jo. And has time to travel to riding competitions with her mother :)

Summer's End Ride also offered a 25 mile set speed after the RnT, so this was bonus training for Luba and I before the 75 at Stormont. I was a bit concerned about doing the RnT *before* taking the wind out of Luba's sails, but I was also glad to run before the day got too hot.

Miss Luba was a perfect lady. She has settled right in to the routine of travelling and competing. No fuss trailer loading. No fuss about tying to the trailer in a field away from the main ridecamp. No fuss trotting out for Charlotte, even during the educational component of the vet check, when Fred coached her about how to trot back to the vet in a straight line. No fuss at the shotgun start. And no fuss settling into a pace that I could keep up with on foot.

This "no fuss, no muss" attitude carried on during the 25 mile Set Speed ride, which came to be known as the Cinderella Set Speed.  Although the trail was quite barefoot friendly, I didn't want to take a chance with a random stone wreaking havoc with our plans to ride 75 miles two weeks hence. So with the encouragement of my friend, Chrystal, I booted up with Renegade strap-ons for the ride.

I am a big fan of Renegade hoof boots and have had much success with both strap-on and glue-on models.  I currently have two sets of strap-ons that are between 3 and 5 years old. The tread is starting to wear on one pair, but the great thing is that you can order spare parts! So it is pretty easy to repair and rebuild the boots to get extra life out of the good parts.

About 1/4 mile out of the start for the 25, Luba blew a front boot cable. Sarah and Bentley, our starting partners, kindly waited for me to dismount and assess the damage. Since we were so close to the start, I decided to go back and get a new boot, and they continued on to win the Bronze division!

Luba and I had a great first loop, riding on our own together on the beautiful sandy and mostly shady forest trails. By the time we got back to the vet check at noon, it was decidedly hot and humid. It took Luba an uncharacteristically long time (nearly 10 minutes) to pulse down to 56, the set speed parameter. However, once she cooled down, she was all As, so we went back to the trailer for the rest of our half-time hold.  I removed her boots, washed them and put them back on before heading for the second half.

A few miles out, Solstice and Angel caught up with us. The mares paced well together so we happily flew through the bush. We were half way up the road to pick up a playing card at the turn around when Bang! We blew another front boot cable! Luba stood quietly so I could remove both front boots, even while Solstice and Angel carried on. I tied the boots to my saddle, but as we started out, one of them fell off. I decided to collect my card and pick up the boot on the way back. I left both damn boots with Rick at the water stop, set off at a canter, hoping to catch up with Solstice and Angel.

We were making good time, when Bang! We blew a rear boot cable. Luba stood quietly while I took both back boots off. Now we were riding naked!

Despite all the Cinderella shoe-throwing, we completed the 25 miles in a respectable 2:51:50. 

No fuss, no muss, no bother!

Run Luba Run!

One of the key principles in conditioning your horse for distance riding is to increase either speed or distance, but not both at the same time.

A big goal this year has been to increase speed. Over the past couple months, this has included interval work at home and several trips to St. Lazare to ride on the trails maintained by the Club Equestre les Forestiers.  Luba and I have had the good fortune to practise group riding, often led by seasoned endurance rider, Wendy MacCoubrey. She has an uncanny ability to hone in on our weaknesses and ruthlessly turn them into strengths.

Going faster means more cantering and less trotting. We pace very well at the trot  - 6, 7, 8, 9 mph - no problemo. Pacing well at the canter is a work in progress. There is a great 1.75 mile canter loop at St. Lazare where we have been working on this. Luba settles into a comfortable canter around 12 mph, so I have to work hard to keep her steady at 10 or 11 mph. When she gets going too fast, I bring her back to a slower trot and then ask for canter again.

We have also been working on changing position in a group, and in particular, in passing, leading and leaving the group if we want to maintain a faster pace. Important skills if you want to ride your own ride.

So our objective for the Coates Creek 50 last weekend was to pace as close to 10 mph as possible for the whole ride.

The 50 started in the dark at 5:30 am. Luba and I set out with our friends Mecca and Denise on the white loop. Both gray mares paced well side by side and soon we were enjoying the beautiful sunrise and talking about how fun it is to ride together, la la la.  We soon caught up with our friends, Yellowhead and Lia, who said she hadn't seen a ribbon in a while on this concession road. There was a cross road not far ahead, so we checked the map and continued on to see what road it was.
YIKES! We had missed a left hand turn two concessions back. By the time we were back on trail, we had added about 5 miles to our 50.

LESSON 1: If you don't see a ribbon for a while, turn around and go back to the last ribbon on trail.



It was a cool day, so Luba pulsed down to 58 as soon as I took off her saddle. We were trying to leave promptly at our out time for every loop, so we left on the green loop a minute or two ahead of Mecca and Denise. They caught up to us a after a few miles and the girls paced well together for the rest of the loop averaging 10 mph.

Luba was eating well, but in hindsight, I was not. I was definitely the weak link on the team.  I had a Larabar,  lots of fruit and Green Goodness smoothies. An apple a day may keep the doctor away, but endurance riders need more serious carbs.

LESSON 2: Make some sandwiches for your crew cooler.

photo: T. McGee

The girls pulsed in together after the green loop and we completed the first trip around the red loop at an average pace of 10 mph.

Luba and I left on time, alone and unafraid, for the second and last red loop. All day my strategy was to mount up about 10 minutes before our out time and to warm up doing walk/trot transitions on 20 m circles and figure 8's near the out timer. When it was time to head out, she was already wound up and ready to slingshot onto the trail. Ready, Set, GO! and we cantered out of ride camp. This was a big improvement over past events, where I would have to get off and run out of camp with Luba in hand until we were in the bush and she was convinced that we really were going to ride another loop.

LESSON 3: Warm up your horse and canter out after every hold.

Turns out that Luba can run at close to 10 mph for over 50 miles and with great recoveries.  She finished all A's, ride time of 5:46, with a heart rate of 48 just 10 minutes after crossing the finish line.

RUN LUBA RUN!

photo: wendywebbphotography.com

Misty morning magic

Something magical always happens when I start the week with an early Monday morning riding lesson.

Here's the sight that greeted me as I turned up the driveway to Horses of the Sun:

The Under the Covers segment on CBC Radio 2 Morning was a great cover of the David Bowie song, Let's Dance,  that inspired Luba's name  - Serious Moonlight.

This song is Luba in her happy place wearing a pink aura.

And so it is. Thoughts become things.  We danced around the sand ring.